Spatial [adj.]
relating to a space (physical or virtual) where experiences are created by the diverse values and needs of the people who interact with it.
Medium [n.]
a means by which something is communicated; the intervening substance through which impressions are conveyed to the senses.
Spatial Medium is an interdisciplinary consulting studio that works with clients who are re-imagining how we activate and build spaces + systems for social connection, health, and sustainability.
Origin Story
Spatial Medium began as a nagging thought in my brain back in 2003. At that time I was working as a designer and project coordinator for an architectural firm that did healthcare work, mostly renovations of existing hospital facilities. A few years out of school, I had already gotten knocked around a bit in my new career and had barely weathered the economic earthquake from the attack and aftermath of 911. While just grateful to have a job, I surprisingly enjoyed the complexity of planning healthcare experiences .
Until, that is, I had a moment where I thought maybe my chosen profession was seriously flawed.
I remember being in a hospital room in the middle of a measurement survey for a very well-known healthcare client. But the room was not empty. There were patients trying to heal and find relief as I moved around them with a tape measure. The purpose of the space (healing) was constantly being interrupted by myself, the noise over the paging system, etc.
I carried those patients with me in my mind as I went back to work, measuring more occupied rooms and witnessing the non-stop activity in the halls. Many of the nurses came up to me that day to ask what I was doing and why - they hadn't been informed of my presence or mission even though both would affect them directly. I found that, when prompted, they were eager to answer my questions about what might be needed to support their work, help patients be more comfortable/heal faster, and generally make the day-to-day more sustainable.
They had wonderful ideas and unique insights - rightly so as they were on the ground, doing the work.
I logged all of the information and felt inspired, knowing that I would help to make a difference in their jobs and perhaps send some patients home sooner. This was what I had gone to school for - to make lives better through the spaces we inhabit. That feeling quickly subsided once I returned to the office as my supervisor denied each design request stating that "the folks paying the bill don't care about all of that."
In that moment, it was decided. I would always include those "not paying the bill" in my design solutions. Their experiences mattered, too.
As I move through my career, I seek out opportunities to achieve victories for end users and their communities while still meeting the goals of the leadership team. I am inspired to continue amplifying, integrating, and supporting the invisible stories I see, knowing that someday we - clients, collaborators, and communities - will default to co-creating experiences and services that make things better for all who engage with them.
Hi, I'm Valerie Farber,
self-proclaimed spacemaking nerd and Principal of Spatial Medium.
Working as an architectural designer for over 20 years, I am wired to experience life through spatial interactions, systems, and connections - both physical and intangible.
I believe interdisciplinary, collaborative design has the power to create a stronger and more caretaking society, foster inclusive thinking, and create strategies for social change.
Valerie Farber, Principal
Valerie Farber is a design fusionist and strategic advisor who is deeply connected to how we create, navigate, and care for our physical environments and shared experiences. Her work spans the realms of architecture, experience design, creative facilitation, and business advising. Across different project types of varying scales, she’s committed to developing systems-aware, big-picture strategies that put citizens first.
Valerie has contributed to multiple award-winning architectural projects, including the Michael E. Busch Annapolis Library, the Mesquite Library, and the Historic Columbia Theatre restoration. Her interdisciplinary team was an honoree in the Van Alen Institute’s “Emergency Contact” Design Competition for their “Terra Truck” prototype. The accessible and culturally sensitive mobile mental-health unit provides de-stigmatization, education, and treatment at scale.
She also produces interactive and educational programming. The most recent — Intentional Spacemaking Club — invites curious learners on guided tours of public spaces around NYC to investigate both the environment we are in, the systems that affect and intersect that environment, and how we each experience and create space in the world.
With a wide range of experiences, Valerie works in and is influenced by a variety of areas:
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Valerie is a graduate of the School of Architecture at Syracuse University and has collaborated on architectural builds across the United States with firms like Dattner Architects, LMN Architects, and Perkins Eastman. Her work includes cultural and wellness spaces, as well as social-impact co-working offices and public infrastructure projects.
While at Syracuse, she was introduced to the practice of Adaptive Reuse, which is the reuse of an obsolete, existing building for a different purpose than that for which it was originally designed. One of her first opportunities to practice this conversion was working on set design for Julia Mandle’s production of FEAST, inside a former horse stable in then-neglected Dumbo, Brooklyn. She has seen first-hand how the recycling of buildings and public spaces — particularly through artistic insertions — can revitalize existing neighborhoods while reducing waste and environmental impact.
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Systems thinking is an approach to understanding complicated problems by examining the relationships, patterns, and interconnections between different parts of a whole system. A longtime student and practitioner of this way of thinking—which has parallels to navigating complicated architectural builds—Valerie uses this holistic approach to analyze and synthesize stakeholder needs for every project.
Beyond projects of the physical realm, Valerie also helps small businesses build space in the market for their unique offerings through her Vision Lab Sessions. These visioning and consulting sessions tease out an entrepreneur’s toughest ideas, products, and systems challenges. Her focus is on creating profit and alignment through unique-to-market services and programming.
Valerie’s business background includes the Kauffman Foundation’s New Ventures FastTrac Business Program and building several successful businesses of her own.
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Valerie follows the problem solving process of the Creative Reaction Lab’s Equity Centered Community Design, developed by Antoinette D. Carroll, which integrates history and healing practices, and addresses power dynamics within the design process. She understands her responsibility to hold space as a Design Ally and Equity Designer to prioritize community co-creation and voices of lived experience in her work.
Architecture, design, and business have a long record of upholding systemic oppression, and Valerie integrates Equity Centered Community Design frameworks into each project to promote reduction of harm.
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Valerie is certified by the Waterfront Alliance as a WEDG Associate and is committed to protecting and providing waterfront access to the communities most disrupted by climate change. Strengthening her understanding of waterfront environments, she has a weekly practice of swimming the Brooklyn coastline and provides private open water swim lessons through her company AquaKula.
Spending time in the ocean has provided Valerie a grounded and visceral sense of awareness and understanding of self, community, and the environment. It has taught her mindfulness, how to embrace and adapt to change, and how to navigate discomfort — lessons she shares with her clients and design community alike.
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A recording artist and live performer, Valerie uses the collaboration and leadership skills she’s gleaned as a jazz musician throughout her design practice. Just as she does when improvising onstage, she listens, notices nuances, builds on an idea, and works towards a collective outcome for her projects and clients. It requires playfulness, trust, and grace to co-create a successful result.
Sometimes it takes a unique perspective to see opportunity, connect ideas, and create experiences that benefit and matter to everyone they serve.